The term folk costumes is applied to the particular clothes worn by the rural farm population in pre-industrial Norway, according to the Norwegian Institute of Bunad and Folk Costume. These clothes were the "result of tradition, external influence, local creativity and individual taste, and differed from the clothing habits in urban areas" where city-dwellers were more influenced by broader European fashions.

By the mid 19th century, the wearing of folk costumes was declining but Norwegian nationalism embraced folk culture of the countryside and folk costumes regained popularity. In modern times, folk costumes have become expressions of national pride and are worn particularly on Constitution Day, May 17, as the images at this site indicate.